Healthcare career question: union to excluded? Leadership question.

[Healthie]

I’ve done clinical work for a bit and I’m looking at opportunities in leadership where I’ll be excluded from the union. One benefit of this is my health authority with chip in a good amount of money for a masters degree. I’m wondering what other people’s experience with this transition have been?

[Duke03]

Every "union shop" is different in my experience.  Where I work management is not held very highly at all.  The front line managers take it from both sides... the union and from upper management.  Their stress levels are off the charts and many just don't look physically well.  Where I work if you cross over to the Management side at first you will take a 20k-30k a year pay cut and have worst insurance that cost 4 times as much...Granted if you rise up through the management ranks you will eventually make more than top union pay, but after 10 years taking a 30k pay cut will you ever make that money up?  Also plan on people that once where your friends treat you way different.  Not saying it's right, but it's just the way it is.  The only benefit of where I work to taking a management job is you reach full retirement age 5 years early, but even with that it's jut not worth it.  Your MMV

[wonkette]

I've been in a nurse's union before, this is too specific to generalize because each group bargains a contract with each employer. We don't have sector bargaining like Europe. In some places the unionized staff have much better continuing ed benefits, in some places it is the non-union staff who are offered better continuing education as an incentive to take on extra/different duties. You'll have to do the research at each employer you're interested in.